What we didn’t reckon on were where those standards would take this car above and beyond the refinement we’ve already experienced elsewhere.

The Diesel is astonishingly smooth and quiet. Its V8 declines to send any of the shudders that a compression-ignition engine can transmit into the cabin on start-up, and it settles to a remote, demure idle that isn’t even faintly clattery or brusque.

Frankly, it’s barely audible. The engine raises its voice just loud enough to hear it as you move off but remains pleasant and sweet-sounding as it spins faster, and even at high revs it never intrudes.

Bentley’s W12 is a little more tuneful when worked hard, but the difference between the two engines on tonal richness is remarkably small.